Our simple ambition is to reduce inequalities and discrimination within Westmorland and Furness. We want to be a council that understands and takes account of the varying needs and experiences of the different groups among our community, working hard to ensure all our residents, staff and members are included, supported and celebrated for who they are.
In March 2024, Westmorland and Furness Cabinet agreed the first set of equality objectives for the council. Our objectives reflect the position that, as a new organisation still working to bring together the systems and processes of four legacy councils, we need to focus on putting in place key foundations (for example, structures, data collection, policies etc) that will enhance our focus on EDI in the years to come. Our objectives are to:
- establish and embed structures and processes that help to ensure an EDI focused approach at all levels of the organization.
- enhance our understanding of our customers and communities, and provide services that reflect the needs of, and are accessible to all.
- strengthen knowledge of our workforce and their experiences in the organisation in order to enable a diverse workforce in which everyone can progress.
Our objectives are set out in our EDI position statement.
They are supported by our EDI action plan (available from equalities@westmorlandandfurness.gov.uk).
Our newly established corporate EDI network, chaired by our Assistant Chief Executive, as Corporate Management Team EDI lead, will monitor our progress against the action plan, reporting quarterly into our Cabinet.
In future years, in line with the public sector equality duty, we will publish annual reports setting out our progress against our plan and the Equality Act more generally. Our first progress update as Westmorland and Furness Council to March 2024 is included within our position statement.